Princess Plus question

[Cruise Raider]

52 minutes ago, wowzz said:

It is always difficult to make a direct comparison,  but most of the wines in Vines are from bottles that would cost around $6 or $7 retail.  Obviously Princess buy in bulk, and pay no tax, so the nett cost will be no more than $4. Six glasses of wine from a bottle = 70c (roughly) a glass. 

So even on wine Princess make a profit. 

 

Never were the wines we drank we anywhere near $6 or $7 a bottle retail ... more like $37 - $65 retail.  Of course, we were charged the difference but still felt like it was a great deal.  BTW, Princess pours are 5 to a bottle, never 6.  

I'm not saying they aren't making a profit but, not so much on us.  We took full advantage of the great wines we were served.  

Edited July 14, 2022 by Cruise Raider

[wowzz]

12 minutes ago, Cruise Raider said:

Never were the wines we drank we anywhere near $6 or $7 a bottle retail ... more like $37 - $65 retail. 

Now I'm intrigued! 

Are you saying that you were drinking wine in Vines for less than $12 a glass,  that cost over $40 a bottle ?

Admittedly I'm a Brit, and mainly drink South American,  South African or Australian wines,  but despite my best efforts,   I never found a red wine on Princess that would comnand that sort of price in our stores.

What wines should I have tried ?

[jwattle]

45 minutes ago, wowzz said:

Well, on a port day, two beers before lunch,  two wines with lunch, a beer around 16:00, followed by a couple of glasses of wine. Back to cabin to get ready for dinner,  with a glass of wine from room service. 

Vines,  couple of glasses of wine,  then the same for dinner,  and a couple more as a nightcap.

So 14 - pretty easy really! 

You may have left out the coffees with a shot and the mimosas 🥂😁

[redtop101]

I originally booked a 10 night Pacific Coastal in Sept 2022 from Vancouver back to Vancouver.Lots of sea days.  I booked the “no frills” deal as my wife doesn’t drink anything but tea and coffee. Shortly after booking, Princess came out with a smoking deal for the Princess Plus package. It just meant moving up our balcony cabin from mid-ship Caribe to mid-aft Baja. The bottom line extra  cost for the 2 of us was $406 US, so I jumped at the deal. Gratuities and Internet alone are more than that, so I think I’m ahead of the game with the drinks. 
 

 

[memoak]

1 hour ago, pris993 said:

LOL, did you float off the boat?  15 per day is hard to achieve.  

I know we had 2 drinks at lunch, 2 at dinner, 2 wines, 2 special coffees, plus 1 water daily each.   Maybe another cocktail between, still only 10 drinks.    I would be hard pressed to reach 15. 

That is actually only 6 drinks. Coffees, waters and sodas don’t count towards your 15.   Time to add something to your coffee drinks you deserve it

 

[Cruise Raider]

52 minutes ago, wowzz said:

Now I'm intrigued! 

Are you saying that you were drinking wine in Vines for less than $12 a glass,  that cost over $40 a bottle ?

Admittedly I'm a Brit, and mainly drink South American,  South African or Australian wines,  but despite my best efforts,   I never found a red wine on Princess that would comnand that sort of price in our stores.

What wines should I have tried ?

 

We love California wines but no, these were not included in the under $12 a glass limits.  They were more like $15 - $18 a glass, but we could get them for $3 to $6 plus gratuity with the Plus package.  I love  the Rombauer Chardonnay while my husband loved the Seghesio Zin.  There was also a cab he really liked but that was even a bit more but cannot remember which one it was.  

[sloopsailor]

1 hour ago, wowzz said:

Well, on a port day, two beers before lunch,  two wines with lunch, a beer around 16:00, followed by a couple of glasses of wine. Back to cabin to get ready for dinner,  with a glass of wine from room service. 

Vines,  couple of glasses of wine,  then the same for dinner,  and a couple more as a nightcap.

So 14 - pretty easy really! 

 

I won't comment other than pasting this from the CDC.

 

Source:  https://www.cdc.gov/alcohol/onlinemedia/infographics/excessive-alcohol-use.html

 

 

[jwattle]

39 minutes ago, sloopsailor said:

 

I won't comment other than pasting this from the CDC.

 

Source:  https://www.cdc.gov/alcohol/onlinemedia/infographics/excessive-alcohol-use.html

 

 

Pretty sure none of us does this habitually, just on the cruise, but thanks for the gentle (or not so much) from those concerned about our "drinking to excess". At this point, and for, apparently, your peace of mind, I have always conducted myself in a proper manner on a ship...even when schooling someone onboard...and off.🤭

Cheers friend,

The Countess

[c-boy]

1 hour ago, sloopsailor said:

 

I won't comment other than pasting this from the CDC.

 

Source:  https://www.cdc.gov/alcohol/onlinemedia/infographics/excessive-alcohol-use.html

 

 

[brisalta]

5 hours ago, Cruise Raider said:

 

We love California wines but no, these were not included in the under $12 a glass limits.  They were more like $15 - $18 a glass, but we could get them for $3 to $6 plus gratuity with the Plus package.  I love  the Rombauer Chardonnay while my husband loved the Seghesio Zin.  There was also a cab he really liked but that was even a bit more but cannot remember which one it was.  

 

You like a $40 a bottle wine and your husband likes a $20 a bottle wine at retail prices.

Seems you got the better deal. 😉

[wowzz]

6 hours ago, Cruise Raider said:

 

We love California wines but no, these were not included in the under $12 a glass limits.  They were more like $15 - $18 a glass, but we could get them for $3 to $6 plus gratuity with the Plus package.  I love  the Rombauer Chardonnay while my husband loved the Seghesio Zin.  There was also a cab he really liked but that was even a bit more but cannot remember which one it was.  

Thanks - I normally avoid US wines, so I'll give them a try on our next cruise.  

[wowzz]

5 hours ago, sloopsailor said:

 

I won't comment other than pasting this from the CDC.

 

Source:  https://www.cdc.gov/alcohol/onlinemedia/infographics/excessive-alcohol-use.html

 

 

Purely arbitrary numbers of course.

By that count,  every Frenchman,  Spaniard and Italian would be considered heavy drinkers !

[caribill]

8 hours ago, pris993 said:

LOL, did you float off the boat?  15 per day is hard to achieve.  

I know we had 2 drinks at lunch, 2 at dinner, 2 wines, 2 special coffees, plus 1 water daily each.   Maybe another cocktail between, still only 10 drinks.    I would be hard pressed to reach 15. 

 

The 15 limit is for alcohol beverages only, so the 2 coffees and 1 water do not count towards that limit.

[caribill]

12 hours ago, Cruise Raider said:

That may be true with some of the mixed drinks but not for wines.  Even at wholesale, I think many of the wines we’ve had onboard are more like a cost of $5 to $10 a drink. Of course, we pay the upcharge for those but not $5 to-$10 .. more like $3- $6.  

 

The wine costs Princess less than normal wholesale since Princess pays no state or Federal taxes on the wine it buys.

[MissP22]

11 hours ago, pris993 said:

LOL, did you float off the boat?  15 per day is hard to achieve.  

I know we had 2 drinks at lunch, 2 at dinner, 2 wines, 2 special coffees, plus 1 water daily each.   Maybe another cocktail between, still only 10 drinks.    I would be hard pressed to reach 15. 

Not at all but we did manage to fine lots of new friends. 

[latebloomer56]

19 hours ago, Cruise Raider said:

Once the tips and WiFi are added in, you only need about 3 drinks to break even with purchasing the plus package.  But, the plus package also allows for unlimited specialty coffees, sodas, waters, mock tails,  etc. 

But, I understand your point.  It is hard to justify if you don’t drink any alcohol or use WiFi.  

This is why we have the package my husband doesn't drink but will have a mocktail, soda & water for excursions myself I am not a big drinker but like to try different things plus I love my lattes.

[Steelers36]

15 hours ago, cr8tiv1 said:

 

Splitting hairs here...if you are elite, wi-fi will only cost you $5 a day (the other $5 is returned as useless non-refundable OBC).

 

 

When that happened to anyone it was a particular ship doing it wrong and most likely short-lived.  That was absolutely not the policy. 

 

Now that MedallionNet ordering recognizes guest CC Member level, Platinum & Elite members see their 50% discount applied at point-of-purchase in the MC App.  Should be no more need for OBC.  I would say if a guest does not see the discount being applied in MC App, call Princess and get a rep to apply the order over the phone (Chat won't really work unless they can see credit card on file to use).

 

[Cruise Raider]

14 hours ago, brisalta said:

 

You like a $40 a bottle wine and your husband likes a $20 a bottle wine at retail prices.

Seems you got the better deal. 😉

We have only seen the Old Vine Seghesio for $36 a bottle but if we can find it for $20, we would be all over that.  But, yes … he oftentimes got the Rombauer right alongside me.  It was the cab, somewhere in the Napa Valley that he loved so much but they didn’t have it at very bar.  I think it may have been a Silverado cab.  
I was actually fine with the Mer Soleil Chardonnay and it fell within the package but don’t think they will be offering that by the glass anymore.  
For two future sailings, we are going with the Premier Package.  It’s a bit of a splurge but we’ll worth it for us on a short cruise.  

[doog442]

21 hours ago, sloopsailor said:

 

I won't comment other than pasting this from the CDC.

 

Source:  https://www.cdc.gov/alcohol/onlinemedia/infographics/excessive-alcohol-use.html

 

 

 

 

It's a holiday . You know the time you may choose to drink and eat to excess if you want for a week or two. 

 

I don't recall my missus drinking dirty bananas at 1pm at home and I certainly don't touch alcohol when home during the day. However on a well deserved vacation we do and may well have reached our limit on the odd occasion drinks wise and it was great fun.  Will that impact our future health or others - I doubt it.

 

So unless folk are consuming this on a daily basis your picture is probably a little out of context with the spirit of the thread if you excuse the pun. 

 

Having just come off the Enchanted I thought the plus package was excellent value with some decent offerings. 

 

 

[wowzz]

1 hour ago, Cruise Raider said:

We have only seen the Old Vine Seghesio for $36 a bottle but if we can find it for $20, we would be all over that.  But, yes … he oftentimes got the Rombauer right alongside me.  It was the cab, somewhere in the Napa Valley that he loved so much but they didn’t have it at very bar.  I think it may have been a Silverado cab.  
I was actually fine with the Mer Soleil Chardonnay and it fell within the package but don’t think they will be offering that by the glass anymore.  
For two future sailings, we are going with the Premier Package.  It’s a bit of a splurge but we’ll worth it for us on a short cruise.  

It seems that Vines does go overboard (sic) on US wines. A shame that there is not more diversity in the wine list. 

Is it because Americans do not have the opportunity to drink Chilean, South African, Argentinian, Portuguese, Sicilian etc wines in the US, and therefore do not want to try anything new when on holiday ?

[Cruise Raider]

1 hour ago, wowzz said:

It seems that Vines does go overboard (sic) on US wines. A shame that there is not more diversity in the wine list. 

Is it because Americans do not have the opportunity to drink Chilean, South African, Argentinian, Portuguese, Sicilian etc wines in the US, and therefore do not want to try anything new when on holiday ?

 

We are basically in wine country here in California ... very close to many wine regions.  We have tried wines from all over the world and  love them all.  Our choice is to support our local wineries ... but we certainly do stray on cruises.  

[HaveDogWillTravel]

1 hour ago, wowzz said:

 

Is it because Americans do not have the opportunity to drink Chilean, South African, Argentinian, Portuguese, Sicilian etc wines in the US, and therefore do not want to try anything new when on holiday ?

This is a fun link. It’s like living in the middle of a candy store but better. Going to wineries for an afternoon or evening picnic with live music is an easy & common pastime.  You could go everyday and never go to the same winery twice. The wine is excellent.  This is why I have a hard drinking wine that is less than. 

https://discovercaliforniawines.com/wine-map-winery-directory/

 

Edited July 15, 2022 by HaveDogWillTravel

[wowzz]

9 minutes ago, Cruise Raider said:

 

We are basically in wine country here in California ... very close to many wine regions.  We have tried wines from all over the world and  love them all.  Our choice is to support our local wineries ... but we certainly do stray on cruises.  

I guess that here in the UK we are lucky. Yes, we do produce some decent white wines, but in small quantities. 

That means that the whole world of wines is available to us, and the choice is immense, even in an average supermarket. 

Certainly the choice is far wider than in comparable supermarkets in the US. 

I just find it slightly sad that some people (obviously not you) when on a cruise just want to drink the same old wines that they drink back in the US, rather than broaden their horizons.

 

[Cruise Raider]

7 minutes ago, wowzz said:

I guess that here in the UK we are lucky. Yes, we do produce some decent white wines, but in small quantities. 

That means that the whole world of wines is available to us, and the choice is immense, even in an average supermarket. 

Certainly the choice is far wider than in comparable supermarkets in the US. 

I just find it slightly sad that some people (obviously not you) when on a cruise just want to drink the same old wines that they drink back in the US, rather than broaden their horizons.

 

 

I love the wine flights at Vines.  They always include wines from all different regions.  I have my favorites but I'm with you .. I will try wines from all over the globe.  

[Steelers36]

1 hour ago, wowzz said:

It seems that Vines does go overboard (sic) on US wines. A shame that there is not more diversity in the wine list. 

Is it because Americans do not have the opportunity to drink Chilean, South African, Argentinian, Portuguese, Sicilian etc wines in the US, and therefore do not want to try anything new when on holiday ?

We have lots of variety and diversity here in Ontario (and I like to support the good local wineries as well).  The only thing bad here is the government monopoly.  But that monopoly is about the largest single buyer of wines around the world.